Apparatus for applying jackets to books



June 2, 1953 DE FLOREZ EI'AL APPARATUS FOR APPLYING JACKETS T0 BOOKS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 13, 1948 INVENTOR 'ZzuMs" (If ['Zorez Garmii 15. under/22am Jr.

m'rommy J1me 1953 DE FLOREZ 51 m. 2,640,207

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING JACKETS T0 BOOKS Filed July 1a, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet z I IN VEN TOR. [1145 de Florez greii b. Luulermah J1:

L. DE FLOREZ ETAL' APPARATUS FOR APPLYING'JACKETS TO BOOKS;

June 2, 1953 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July 13, 1948 INVENTOR. Z 144s rZe Florez Gggreii B, linderman Jr flITOR/VEY June 2, 1953 L. DE FLOREZ EI'AL 0 APPARATUS FOR APPLYING JACKETS To" BOOKS Filed July 13, 1948 '4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented June 2, 1953 UNITED STATES T FF ICE APPARATUS FOR APPLYING JACKETS TO BOOKS Application July 13, 1948, Serial No. 38,416

30 Claims.

This invention relates to books and has for its object the provision of a method of and an apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books. More particularly, the invention provides an improvement for superposing jackets, such as flat sheets of paper, over the covers of books and folding the ends of the jackets around and under the cover in a rapid, continuous and automatic operation.

Heretofore in the publishing industry, e. g. in the manufacture of hard cased books, the application of paper jackets to the finished books has customarily been a hand operation, involving uneconomical, tedious and tiring work for a con siderable number of persons, even in a plant of moderate size. A specific but primary object of the present invention is to provide a new, emcient and wholly automatic machine which receives a succession or stream of finished, closed books, which opens the cover of each and applies a paper jacket to it, and which thereupon closes the books and delivers them as a corresponding succession or stream of jacketed books ready for shipment and sale.

This application is a continuation-in-part of our co-pending application, Serial No. 740,798 filed April 11, 19%7, now abandoned.

The apparatus which represents a presently preferred embodiment of the invention includes, for example, a book feed system, means for laterally extending the covers of the books, means for feeding jackets to the extended covers, a conveyor system for carrying the books with their covers extended laterally, with the jackets superposed thereon, into engagement with means for folding the jackets over the ends of the extended covers, said means comprising two endless belts, each with a double twist and arranged to travel in the direction of the books fed through the apparatus so that as the covers and jackets are carried along with the belts to the areas of the twists, the twists impose a folding of the jackets over the ends of the extended covers. The invention, in the complete form thereof now preferred, also includes means for maintaining the twists in particular positions with respect to the conveyor, means for pressing the folds of the jackets into close engagement with the covers and means for closing the jacketed covers and ejecting the books from the apparatus.

An important object of the invention is to provide a simple means of presenting the covers of the book to be jacketed free of the end or other pages of the book, without extensive handling of the book and without damaging the pages therein.

Another important characteristic feature of our invention is that the belts have a lateral outward movement in the region of the twists which draws the jacket around and over the ends of the covers, this action being very preferably accomplished without any other relative motion among the jacket and the book and the folding means. In an advantageous embodiment of our invention, we accomplish this control of folding by providing pressure means for holding the folded belts at the twists in gripping contact with the jacket. The friction coupled with the lateral movement of the belts may be utilized to locate, or to cooperate in locating, the folds at the edges of the covers.

In one embodiment of our invention, we provide a feeding device that includes a conveyor on which closed books are placed and another conveyor for receiving flat unfolded jackets. The conveyor which receives the closed books carries them in upright position and spreads the covers apart leaving the pages in a depending position. Ihe conveyor for the jackets is provided with means for removing the flat paper jackets from a stock or other supply and conveying them one at a time to a position overlying the opened covers of the books. In this position with the jackets overlying the extended covers, the books are moved forward onto a platform. Advantageously the pages of the books depend through an elongated slot and the covers are supported on the platform in a horizontal position. Our presently preferred platform on which the covers of the books are supported and conveyed comprises two fiat horizontally disposed metal plates with a longitudinal space therebetween. The platforms are advantageously under the twisted belts and the covers, are accordingly, fed into contact with the under surfaces of the belts. The endless belts are passed along the platform, one belt being in contact with each cover, in the same direction and at the same rate of speed as the travel of the conveyor means. The covers pass through the twists in the belts, through a fold control device which determines the location of the folds, and through creasing means, and are discharged from the apparatus.

Advantageously the covers are conveyed in a supported position along under the belts at the entrance end and are, after passing through the twists, shifted to a position above the belts at which position they remain until they are moved out of contact with the belts.

We have found that it is important to use belts that are not only sufficiently flexible that they will pass around pulleys of, say, 3 to 6 inches in diameter, but which have transverse flexibility and can be folded upon themselves repeatedly without injury. A fabric belt of cotton cord in the nature of a heavy canvas of uniform width, with straight edges and considerable body without stifiness is suitable.

In one embodiment of our invention, we use a second pair of endless belts driven in synchronism with the twisted belts and in superposed contacting relation. The covers of the books with the jackets folded thereover are passed between the superposed belts and the twisted belts and the jackets are creased or pressed into close contact with the covers to complete the operation. In this form of our invention, we mount each superposed belt on two pulleys, one a hard pulley and the other a soft yieldable pulley. The belt portions first encountered by the jacketed covers under the hard pulleys hold the jacket in place. The belt portion under the soft pulley is the actual creasing means. In other words, one part of these belts holds the jacket in posi tion, while the other part creases the folds of the jacket.

We also provide a discharge device which comprises guiding and folding members, into which the books are discharged from the belts after the jackets have been applied. These members close the covers of the books, turn the books on their fiat sides and convey them to any suitable place for further disposition such as storage, packing, etc.

These and other novel features of the invention will be better understood after considering the following further exposition taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figs. 1a, 1b, 1c and 1d are perspective views which together comprise a more or less diagrammatic illustration of a complete apparatus embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a-detailed showing of the angle plate assembly of Fig. la;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary elevation of a belt-advancing ratchet in Fig. la;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of means for locating the centering rollers, of Fig. 1a.;

Fig. 5 is a series of fragmentary sectional views of one of the belts taken at the positions indicated by the arrows illustrating the movement in the region of the twist;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken at 5-6 in Fig.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged, fragmentary detail view of certain parts in Fig. 1b; and

Fig. 8 is a perspective, from another direction, of the part of the apparatus shown in Fig, 2.

Referring to Fig. 1a the books 60 to be jacketed are placed in a continuous stack-line succession. with their spine or binding upward, on belts 5| located on the floor of inclined chute 62. The belts move the books toward a position disposing the first in front of one of the pusher bars 63 on the first stage conveyor chain arrangement 64, the latter comprising a pair of belts or chains traveling crosswise of the path of the books on the belts 6| and both disposed beyond said path, to hold the bars 63. The pulley shaft 65 has on its end a ratchet 56 to be operated by a pawl 61. The pawl 61 is oscillated around the axis of the pulley shaft by reciprocation of a connecting link 61a, the distance of travel of the latter being.

such that the pawl and ratchet advance the belts 6| 9, distance slightly more than the thickness of the book to be jacketed. An adjustable curved segment 68 is located near and at the end of the pawl stroke, outwardly adjacent the path of the pawl, the segment acting to confine the outer surface of the free end of the pawl so that during the first part of the return stroke, the pawl is prevented from sliding back up the ramp of the next ratchet tooth in the manner usual when a confining segment is not used.

The resulting backward movement of the ratchet and the pulley shaft through the distance that the pawl is held by the segment against the ratchet causes the books on the belts to move backward in the chute at the bottom edge, but leaving one book, i. e. the first in the procession, in position at the pusher bar 63. The backward movement thus causes a space between the bottom or back surface of the one book that is about to be moved by the first stage chain conveyor pusher bar 63 and the remaining books in the supply chute. Without this periodic backward movement of the books in the supply chute, the book being pushed directly by the first stage chain conveyor bar would in some instances be unable to move as a result of the pressure of the remaining books in the chute.

It will be noted that the flat belts 6| terminate at the bottom of the inclined chute 62. Two shorter fiat belts 69 (see also Figs. 2 and 8) of a' similar width moving in unison with the belts Bl move the books from the bottom of the chute 62 across a fiat horizontal plate 70 to a position on said plate and just beyond the end of the belts 69, in front of the first stage chain conveyor pusher bar 63. The books are held in a vertical position at the end of the two flat belts 69 and in position in front of the pusher bar by means of an adjustable box type angle plate I I.

At the top of the angle plate is mounted a limit switch 12, disposed to project over the path of books. The limit switch is actuated to stop the mechanism when a book is lifted upward because of incorrect positioning when the first stage conveyor bar moves the book through the adjustable guide plates 13, the limit switch 12 being ac tuated by the raised book contacting the wheel I4 of the limit switch. The displacement of the arm I5 by the contact operates to displace switch contacts (not shown) of the switch 72 to stop the feed mechanism, including the drive for the belts and the drive for the chain conveyor 64. It will be understood that by suitable belts and other connections, all moving parts of the entire machine may be driven by a single electric motor which has a power supply circuit extending in series through the normally closed switch 12 and such other like switches as are hereinbelow mentioned or otherwise useful, such drive and circuit being omitted from the drawings for the sake of clarity.

The pusher bars 63 of the first stage conveyor are located fairly close to the surface of the horizontal plate 10. The return path of the conveyor chains 64 and bars 63 passes beneath the plate Hi and the upper (working) path of the belts 59 (Fig. 2). In its working position the pusher bar is thus disposed so that it contacts the book (at the bottom or rear edge of the latter) approximately in line with the center of gravity of the book and moves it forward and at right angles to the direction in which it was feddown the chute by the fiat belts. The first stage chain conveyor 64 terminates at a point adjacent the short guide plates 13 between which the book is then passed, the plates 13 being adjustable laterally, i. e. toward and away from each other, to fit various sizes of books.- Just beyond the plates 13, in the path of the book, a pair of vertical guide centering rollers it are disposed, to receive the book between them when it is advanced through the guide plates.

A series of continuously moving, chain-carried pusher bars ll, constituting a second stage conveyor, are respectively adapted to displace successive hooks along in the same direction, from the position in the guides iii to which each book is advanced by the first stage bar 63. Thus the second stage chain conveyor pusher bar ll contacts the book approximately one inch below the upper edge or binding edge and moves it through the first pair of centering rollers it. These rollers together with a further and like pair of vertical rollers '59 maintain the book in a vertical position and center its leading edge with respect to the center splitter plate "Ill (located beyond. the rollers in the path of the hooks), for if the book is not correctly aligned vertically the center splitter mars the pages. The two pairs of vertical rollers interact to achieve the necessary alignment, both vertical and longitudinal. Each roller has its axis in a vertical plane parallel to the beds path, and has upper and lower flanges as shown, having their peripheries of equal diameter, to engage the outer face of the book cover at corresponding upper and lower points.

A book which might tend to move too far to the right or left of the splitter center line is positioned or repositioned correctly by the equal outward movement of the rollers l5, "ill (to accommodate the width of the book) through arcs having radii center points located equally distant to the left and right of the splitter centerline. The equality of lateral movement of the rollers is accomplished by mounting the rollers on spindles all near the ends of pairs of hell cranks 81 (see Fig. 4) pivoted on fixed axes. The rollers, so mounted, are urged against the sides of the book by means of springs 532, i. each spring being under tension between each pair of spindles St. The bell cranks for each pair of rollers are connected by gear teeth 83 which mesh at the pitch line (i. e. at the center line of the book path) so that the outward movement of one roller transmits an equal outward movement to its companion roller through the movement of the meshed gear teeth of their respective bell cranks. .The axis of each of the first set of rollers '15 is truly vertical. The peripheries of the second set of rollers 79 are serrated and the fore and aft centerline of the rollers "i8 is inclined toward the delivery (i. e. the axes of these rollers are tipped slightly forward) causing the book to tend to be pressed down as it moves toward the splitter "it, i. e. overcoming the tendency of the splitter to force the book upward.

The single advance splitter it is a short vertical plate-like member having a blunt knife edg of angular profile. As the book moves into contact with it, it separates the book pages approximately at the middle of the width between the book covers. One of its purposes is to establish a slightly greater width to the page section or page block. A dual splitter 85, compria ing a pair of spaced, parallel, vertical plates greatly elongated in the direction of cock travel, is positioned at the point where the single splitter l8 terminatea. As the book. advances into contact with the dual splitter, and before its trailing. end leaves the rollers '89, the dual splitter receives or enters the book at localities which are preferably at least near the covers, the single splitter 13 having acted to spread the age block' opened from their original vertical position against the pages of the book block to the open horizontal position, as hereinbelow described, in

which the two covers occupy substantially the same plane prior to beginning the operation of wrapping the paper jacket around the cardboard covers.

Curved inclined angle iron tracks arranged in a plow-like configuration are positioned on the outsides of the dual splitter plates 8 Each track terminates, at its nearer end, in a shallow wedge shaped member Blia disposed against the outer surface of the adjacent plate 64, at the corner formed by the intersection of latter with the horizontal oed plate 8%. From the member sea, the track curves outwardly and upwardly to a supporting arm 85c (mounted on frame structure, not shown). The curvature of track 85 is such that as the book advances,

the under surface of the cardboard cover nearthe outer corner of its leading edge is lifted up and out, so as to ride smoothly up along the tracks. Thus as the heel; is moved forward by the pusher bar ll, through the dual splitters 34, the covers of the book contact the tracks 35 and are opened as they slide up the top edges of the curved incline of said tracks.

A safety stop switch I2! is placed just above the lower section of the second stage conveyor chain i28 at a point above the short single splitter 78. The switch which may conveniently be connected in circuit with the switch it as explained hereinabove, stops the; machine when a book tends to ride up on splitters st thereby" preventing the covers from resting on the lam ciin'ed tracks or plow 85.

The pages of the hook that remain in the original vertical position, as the covers open to the horizontal position, are aided in their forward movement by a narrow conveyor tape 86 that moves on top of a solid rectangular bar' 557 locatec'l at the bottom and between the dual splitter plates 84. The bar is provided to prevent the tape from sagging under theweight of the pages of the book,-

and may, if desired, be adjustable vertically at its right hand end (as shown in the drawing) by suitable means 8m, to facilitate engagement of books of different sizes with the subsequent guides.

When the book covers 538' reach the horizontal' position at the top of the inclined tracks" 85 they move onto a platform comprised of angle iron guides as. The guides at are parallel and provide a slot 9| between them to accommodate the pages of the book; the" horizontal portions of the guides provide a platform: for the covers of the book. The guides 89 are shaped and flared at 80, the point where the" hook is received, for the purpose of separating from the book covers, the few pages (if any)" that may ride up the curved incline tracks. The pages that ride up with the covers 88 sag suinci'ently to permit the curved shape of the guides 89 to enter between said pages and the cover and force them down-'' ward. Thus the few pages which had adhered to the cover or otherwise became misplaced are guided into the slot 9|, between the plates 89, thereby permitting the covers to be wrapped in the jacket without interference.

In this regard it may be noted that the tracks 85 and the shaped ends 90 of the guides 89 can be considered as closely related to each other in their functioning in that the shape of the inclined tracks 85 opens the covers of the book with a minimum possibility of conveying pages together with the cover up the specially plow shaped tracks. In the event the end sheets stick to the inside of the cover the shaped ends enter between the cover and the sheets forcing the latter down and away from the cover.

To accommodate books of slightly varying cover sizes and weight, the tracks 85 are adjustable at their upper end, e. g. by appropriately moving the members 850.

The book 60 with its page block depending in the slot 9| and its covers 88 lying in a horizontal plane and resting on the guides 89 is moved by the pusher bar I! to the jacket receiving station illustrated in Fig. 1?), wherein the jacket of paper or the like is superposed on the out-stretched covers. The under edge of the pusher bar I7 is now sliding on the upper faces of the guides 89. It will be understood that books of smaller height than the maximum for which the bar TI and its chain I28 are set, can be pushed through the earlier part of the machine (Fig. la) by the lower part of the depending lug I29 of the bar, such smaller books being actually elevated by the tracks 85 so that their covers rest on the guides 89 and are then preferably engaged by other portions of the pusher bar. In the embodiment of the invention shown a stationary jacket supporting plate I05 (Fig. lb) is provided horizontally and slightly above the path of the opened book covers. (as by being made of separate sections shown in Fig. '7) to permit the passage of the pushers TI which are provided with lugs II5 that extend vertically, at the ends of the pusher bar arms, so as to contact and push the book cover and jacket simultaneously. The relatively thin horizontal portions of the pusher bar pass between the guides 89 and the under side of the plate I05.

The supporting plate I05 is also provided with end and side register stops I against which the jacket is fed to insure its proper register with the book. The provision of the supporting plate I permits the jacket to be placed in position and properly registered before the book is pushed into place. At least the center parts of the plate I05 may be carried by members I03 rising from it at one side and supported from above by a bar I02, such members also serving as side register stops for the jacket.

In Fig. 1b, a supply roll I09 is mounted and actuated by conventional means to feed the web I08 (of paper or other thin, flexible material) continuously or intermittently. The web I 03 may be comprised of printed or unprinted jackets. Necessary take-up and tension devices (not shown) may be included between the roll I09 and the feed rollers I06 and I01, which advance the web toward and over the supporting plate I05. The feeding rollers are driven by suitable gearing and, if desired, may be controlled either by mechanical or electrical means such as a conventional photo-electric register control (not shown) to maintain the proper speed and position to insure that the jackets are cut to The supporting plate is slotted the proper length. This is of particular importance when the jacket paper in the web has been preprinted. The web I08 is intermittently driven forward by feeding rollers I06 and I0! against the register stops I00 and along the stops I03. It is then cut by a knife I04.

Although in some cases pre-cut and individually printed jackets can be fed one at a time to the supporting plate I05 (instead of the web feed) as by conventional paper sheet feeding apparatus of the pile feed or cross feed type suitably operated in timed relation with the illustrated jacketing machine, the procedure of feeding the jackets from a continuous web has been found to be of particular advantage from a cost standpoint, and apparatus for such operation has therefore been selected for illustration herein. To insure that static electricity does not pre vent the jacket from sliding all the way across the supporting plate I05, it has been found necessary to provide radium static eliminators II 0 on the feed end of the supporting plate. When the severed jacket is in place, the pusher bar slides the jacket 01f the supporting plate I05 into position on top of the book cover, the book cover having been simultaneously advanced, beyond the plate, by the pusher bar.

The book with the superposed jacket is moved to the jacket folding station illustrated in Fig. 1c. The jacket folding station comprises two identical, flexible, endless belts I and 2 preferably formed of a woven or web-like material. Each belt has a double twist, the belt I having twist 3 in the horizontal portion and twist 4 in the diagonal or return portion; the belt 2 has similar twists 5 and 6. Belt I is preferably driven by the large diameter pulley 6' and travels in the direction of the arrows over the pulleys I and 8, then in a horizontal position over the roller 9, and back over pulley 5'. Belt 2 is also preferably driven by the large diameter pulley I2, in synchronism with the pulley 6', passes over pulleys I3 and I I to a roller similar to roller 0 (not shown), and back over pulley I2. As these belts travel over their pulleys, the twists are maintained in the positions indicated by means of small rollers I0 and II which bear in the folds of the twists. Although the various pulleys for the two belts may be adjustable for lateral spacing depending upon the sizesof the books which are fed through the machine, the use of reasonably wide belts (for example, about six inches) renders adjustment unnecessary for many purposes, i. e. to accommodate a normal range of book size other than abnormally large books.

The book with the jacket in registry with the open covers is moved by pusher bar ll along the angle irons 89. The angle irons provide a platform to support the horizontally disposed covers of the book. The page block of the book is disposed in a depending position in the slot 0| between the parallel angle irons. As the :book with its superposed jacket reaches the pulleys 8 and I4, it is engaged by the belts I and 2. It will be understood that the rollers 5' and I2 are driven by suitable means (not shown) in synchronism with the pusher bars I7, so that the horizontal pass of each belt moves at exactly the same speed as the bars. The belts, book and jacket travel in unison and at a point shortly beyond the pulleys 8 and I I the belts begin to twist. At this point the jackets and covers are beneath the belt. As the books continue to pass through the twist, they reach the pressure adjusting plates 35 and 36. At this point the belts are approximately doubled upon each other. As the books travel forward, they pass completely through the twists before reaching a position over roller 9. It will be apparent from the foregoing discussion that the covers are now in a position overlyin the belts.

Fig. illustrates in sectional views the way the belts change their positions in the twists. Var ious views are taken at the places indicated by the arrows. Thus it Will be understood that the twisting belts contact the ends of the jacket which extend beyond the book covers and cause them to be folded under the book covers s. the belt twists from the position overlying the book and jacket cover to a position beneath the covers of the book.

In Fig. 6 the apparatus is shown in cross-sec 'tion at the point where the book and jacket are passing between the pressure plates and 3&3 and the jacket is being folded under the book cover by the, lateral twist of the belts l and The plates 35 and 36 are adjustable for pressure against the belts l and 2 by means of threaded members 52. As the belt travels along between the pressure plates 35 it has a double movement normal to the direction of travel. The upper surface of each belt moves outward and the lower surface moves inward as shown by the arrows. This movement has the effect of drawing the jacket around and over the edges of the book covers. By adjusting the pressure of the plates 35 and 35 on the belts, the frictional contact of each folding belt with the jacket determines the amount of tension and lateral pull on the jacket, which may in turn tend to determine the consequent location of the fold-line. If the tension is very loose, the fold may be an appreciable distance from the edges of the covers. On the other hand, if the tension is too great, the jacket is drawn snugly over the edges thereby not, leaving a suiiicient clearance to close the book. Thus in some cases these adjusting plates may in themselves provide a means for locating the folds with the jacket in the desired position.

However, to establish the exact location of the loop or fold in the jacket with respect to the outer edges of the book cover, it has been found advisable to provide a flat fold-locating-plate fill. Specifically a pair of such plates are provided, mounted on the angle guides 89 and thin enough so that the under or inner faces of the book covers may be slid over them. The mounting of the plates 58 is conveniently adjustable, as by threaded studs 58a passing through transverse slots in the horizontal webs of the bars 39, so that the plates can be shifted toward or away from each other. Thus by adjusting the pre sure plates 35 and 36 on their respective belts and properly establishing the horizontal in or out position of the fold-locating-plates 58 with respect to the outer edges of the covers 38, the belts fold the jacket 59 over the outer edge of the plate 58. When the edge of the fold-locating-plate has been definitely established, each succeeding jacket is folded in the identicalposition without variation. Thus the location of the plate insures continuous and exact pre-operational control and a uniform space between the edges of the covers 83 and the jacket 59- (i. e.,

the folds of the jacket). The combined effect of the use of the plates 58 is the elimination of the possibility of variations in the jacket fold resulting from different tensions or pressures on the belts.

In order to crease the jacket which has been 10 folded under the covers of the book, endless belts Eli and 5| are provided which travel around the pulleys 52, 53 and 54, 55 respectively in synchronisrn with the belts l and 2. These two belts, by means of their respective pulleys, may be adjusted upwardly or downwardly to provide the desired pressure on the belts l and 2 on the book covers with their folded jackets. It will be noted that the pulleys 52 and 53 are substantially in a tangential position with respect to the pulleys 9 and 6', respectively, so that the belts thereon are supported directly on thepulleys at the points of pressure contact; the same is true of the pulleys 5d and 55. When a book passes between belts 5d and 5| and I and 2, respectively, it is first engaged by those portions directly under the pulleys 52 and 54, and the jacket is thereby held in position. These belts prevent the fold line from shifting with respect to the edges of the covers. As the book continues to travel, it passes under the rollers 53 and 55 which are each covered with a relatively thick layer of soft sponge rubber 56, 57. The rubber applies such yielding pressure that the folds of the jacket which extend outwardly beyond the firm edges of the covers are flattened or creased. After the creasing operation the book and cover continue to be moved forward by the pusher bar. The pusher bar has remained in contact with the book and jacket throughout the folding operation, the lugs H5 being disposed and spaced so as to permit them to pass inside the several rollers of the jacket folding station.

The book is next moved forward by the pusher bar to the book closing and delivery station illustrated in Fig. 1d. The book with the jacket 59 wrapped around it, having just emerged from the creasing rollers '53, 55 is immediately supported by horizontal plates lit and I ll. It will be noted that the leading edge of these plates is faired downward as at lilo, so as to insure proper rcception of the folded jacket. At this point an endless belt lid beneath the lowermost edge of the book block begins to support the moving book. As long the book is supported by the angle iron guides 89, it is not necessary to give additional support at the bottom of the page section. However, the means for closing the book necessitates termination of the guides 89 and thereafter the book is supported by stationary vertical guide plates l 12 and I [3 (parallel to each other, on onposite sides of the path of the block) and the moving belt or tape H4 which supports the books from beneath. The belt H4, driven at the same linear speed as the chain I28, aids the iovement of the book through the closing and discharge device. Said belt slides on top of a stationary polished, metal supporting member (not shown) similar to the bar 87 in Fig. 1a.

Shaped guides H8 and H9, sloping down and away from the supporting plates [It and Ill, permit the book to close under the force of gravity it is conveyed along by the pusher bar 11, attached to the chain I28, and the belt H4; i. e. the jacketed covers thus gently fall down to or near the sides of the page block. The book is then pushed through stationary guides I20 and i2! which have a flaring opening as shown and which complete the closure of the book and also tend to set the fold in the jacket. At a predetermined distance, e. e. as shown, from the entrance to the guides 12B and [2f the pusher bar ll disengages from the book and begins to return around the sprocket I22; at the same time the leading edge of the book. has engaged and depressed a leaf spring I23 disposed at the top of the long guide I20, the other guide I2l being terminated at least at, and conveniently slightly shorter than, the aforesaid predetermined distance. The book continues to be urged forward by the tape I I4 and the action of the leaf spring I23 is such as to overturn the book (at the open or unguided side, beyond the end of the short guide I2I) onto the moving conveyor I24, which is an endless belt, adapted to carry successive books laterally away from the machine. A low stationary extension I25 of the guide I2l is provided as a pivot for the outer cover of the book as it is overturned on the conveyor I24.

It will be noted that the apparatus described as 'an embodiment of the invention fulfills the objects sought to be achieved, namely the provision of a simple and efficient means of presenting the covers of the book to be jacketed free of the end or other pages of the book, presenting jackets to the book covers and folding said jackets around the ends of the covers without extensive handling of the book and without damaging the pages therein. There are a minimum of moving parts, particularly in the book opening and closing stations, and the entire Operation is automatic and continuous. That is to say, the books are advanced continuously without stopping, by the pusher bars TI on the socalled second stage conveyor chain, through the cover opening, jacket folding and cover closing stations. It will be understood that the chain is provided with a multiplicity of such bars at longitudinally spaced points, so that at all times a considerable number of books are in transit through the machine, each at a different stage in the operations.

It will further be noted that throughout the apparatus the several elements may, if desired, be such as to be capable of ready adjustment so as to be even more flexibly adapted to handle books of varying size. In addition to the adjustable features mentioned, the angle iron guides 89 (and likewise the plates IIB, III, the guides II8, I I9, and the guides I20, I 2 I) may also be adjusted to accommodate books of varying widths (i. e. thickness) and the pusher bar assembly and sprockets I 22 and I26 may, if desired, although not always necessarily, be vertically adjustable to change the height of the pusher bars I! to accommodate books of varying heights,

It will also be noted that although each pusher bar moves the book and later the book and jacket through the apparatus it is assisted at the cover opening station and at the cover closing and delivery station by narrow tapes which move along the floor of the apparatus supporting the page block of the book, but such supplementary conveying means is not used to move the book through the jacket feed station and the jacket folding station. It will be appreciated, however, that the suppelmentary conveying means provided by the narrow belt may be made co-extensive with the pusher bar assembly in order to convey the books more smoothly and to avoid damage to the edges of the page block.

With regard to the pusher bar assembly, while a double chain system, i. e. consisting of a spaced, parallel pair of chains I28 to both of which each bar 11 is fastened, may be used instead of the single chain arrangement shown and may provide greater support and more stability for the arms of each pusher bar, a single chain I28 is nevertheless simple and satisfactory, and for the 12 sake of clarity has been selected for illustration in the present embodiment of the machine.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific apparatus herein shown and'described, but may be embodied in other forms without departure from its spirit.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for applying jackets over the covers of books, a series'of Work means and conveying means by which a book is moved with its binding edge uppermost through said series of work means, said series including means for laterally extending the covers, means for feeding jackets to the extended covers, means for folding the jackets over the ends of the extended covers, said folding means comprising two endless belts, each having at least one twist and arranged to travel in the direction of the book fed through the apparatus and pass over the ends of the books whereby the jackets are caused to fold over the ends of the extended covers, means for pressing the folds of the jacket into close engagement with the covers, and means for closing the jacketed covers.

2. In an apparatus for assembling, at a number of stations and in a sequence of steps, a jacket on the covers of a book, said apparatus including a book receiving station, a cover opening station, a jacket receiving station, a jacket folding station, and a book closing station, in combination, a work conveying means positioned to successively present work to said stations, means for positioning the book in contact with said conveying device with the binding edge of the book uppermost, guiding means positioned at the cover opening station to open the book covers to a horizontal position substantially co-planar with the binding of the book, means for superposing a flat jacket upon the opened book covers, folding means at the jacket folding station comprising two endless flexible belts each having at least one twist therein, the conveying means directing the covers of the book with its contacting jackets into engagement with the belts and through the twists whereby the jackets are folded over the ends of the covers, means for flattening the folded jackets into close contact'with the cover, and guiding means positioned at the cover closing station to guide the covers into vertical position.

3. Apparatus for applying jackets over the covers of books which comprises two endless flexible belts each having at least one twist therein,

means for moving into contact with the two moving belts a series of books each of which is supported with its covers extended outwardly and which has a jacket in the form of a flat sheet in position on the cover, means for directing the covers of the books with their contacting jackets into engagement with the belts and through the twists, the folds in the twists of the belts being laterally spaced from the edges of the covers and adapted to fold the jackets over the edges of the covers and to locate said jacket folds a predetermined distance laterally from the edges of said cover.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 in which the folding means comprises at least two pulleys over which each belt travels, a guide means for maintaining the twist of the belt in a predetermined position with respect to the pulleys.

5. The apparatus of claim 3 in which the folding means comprises fabric belts which are sumciently flexible to fold upon themselves in the region of the twists.

6. The apparatus of claim 3 which comprises a nee ed? 13 small guide roller for each belt arranged to bear against the belt and force it to untwist at a desired location with respect to means for flattening the folds.

'7. The apparatus of claim 3 which. comprises adjustable pressure means for holding the belts in the region of the twists in the desired frictional contact with the. jacket to locate the position of the folds with respect to the edges of the covers and adjustable fold locating means to define uniformly the fold lines of. each successive jacket.

8. Apparatus for applying jackets over the covers of books which comprises two endless flexible. belts each. having at least one twist therein, a platform on which the covers of the books are held in an extended open position, means for moving the books along the platform. in. the direction of the travel of the belts, said platform being so positioned with respect to the. positions of the belts that the covers pass into contact: with the belts, means for placing a jacket in a position overlying the extended covers of each book, whereby the books with the superposed jackets travel between the platform and the belts, means for maintaining the twists at predeterminedpositions opposite each other and near the platform, the folds in said twists being laterally spaced from the edges of the covers, and means for guiding the covers through the twists whereby'the twists in the belts fold the jackets over the covers, the resulting folds inthe jackets being spaced a predetermined distance from the edges of said covers,

9. Apparatus according to claim 8 which comprises a platform having two flatbearing surfaces for the covers and a longitudinal slot in which the depending pages of the books travel.

10. Apparatus according to claim. 8 which comprises a second pair of belts in bearing contact with the twisted belts for creasing the folded jackets.

11. Apparatus for applying jackets over the covers of books which comprises two endless flexible belts having twists therein, means for receiving books with their covers closed and their. backs upward, a diverging track means in operative engagement with the receiving meansfor spreading the covers apart while holding the pages in an upright depending position, means for depositing a jacket in the form of a fiat sheet on the, covers, a conveyor means for receiving the books with their jackets from the diverging track having supports for the covers and a space for the pages, said conveyor being arranged to carry the books and jackets into contact with the belts and through the twists wherebythe jackets are folded over the covers, and means for creasing the jackets.

12. Apparatus for applying jackets over the covers of books which comprises two endless flexible belts having at least one twist in.each belt, means for receiving books withtheir covers closed and their backs upward, a diverging track means in operative engagement with the receiving, means for spreading the covers apart while holding the pagesin an upright depending position, means for depositing a jacket in the form of .aiiat sheet on the covers, aconveyor means for receiving the books with-their jackets from the diverging track havingsupports forthe covers and'aspace for the pages, saidconveyorbeing arranged-to carry, the books and jackets into; contact with the beltsand through the; twists-whereby the jackets, are folded-. over.- the.- covers, means; for

creasing the. jackets, and a receiving means comprising guide means for closing the covers.

13. In an apparatus for applying jacketsto books, a book aligning and opening device comprising vertical guide plates to receive and support a. book in a vertical position with its binding edge upward, at least one pair of vertical centering rollers arranged to bear against the sides of the book, said rollers being mounted for equal lateral movement, at least one splitter arranged to enter between the pages of the page section of the book to support the page section, cover opening. means including diverging and upwardly inclined guides arranged to contact the inside of each cover of the book and raise them to a horizontal position, a platform composed of parallel angle iron guides and spaced apart to provide a slot between. said guides and shaped and flared ends on said guides arranged to gather the page section into the slot between said guides and support the extended covers on said plat form, and a conveying means to move said book successively through the members recited.

14. -In an apparatus for applying jackets over the covers of books, a series of work means, and a conveying means by which a book is moved with its binding edge uppermost through said series of work means, said series including means for laterally extending the covers, means for feeding jackets to the extended covers, means for folding the jackets over the ends of extended covers, said folding means comprising two endless belts, each having at least one twist and arrangedzto travel in the direction of-the. book fed through the apparatus and pass over the ends of the books whereby the jackets are caused to fold over the ends of the extended covers, means for pressing the foldsv of the jacket into close engagement with the covers, means for. closing the extended jacketed covers' including supporting platforms which slope downward and. converge permitting the. covers. to close, flared guide platesto urge the covers into close contact with the book section.

15'. In an apparatusfor assembling, at a number of stations and in a sequence of steps, a jacket on the covers of a book, a conveying device for translating said book with its binding edge upward to said several stations, said device comprising at. least. one pair of sprockets rotatably mounted above the conveying path, an endless chain mounted on said sprockets, a pusherbar attached-to said chain said bar having a depending central portion and horizontal transverse arms with vertical lugs arranged at the extremities. of said arms,v said pusher bar ar ranged to contact the page-section of the book at a point below the binding edge, the transverse arms arranged to contact the covers of the-book when the latter are in a horizontal'position, and the lugs on said armsarranged to contact the jacket superposed on said covers.

16. The. device of claim 1.5. having at least one supplementary conveying means comprising a flexible endless tape mounted on pulleys and ar-.

ranged onthe floor of the" conveying path to contact the. underside of the page block and adapted to be moved at the same speed as the pusher bar conveyor;

17. Apparatus. for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising meansv for" simultaneously advancing abook and" a: jacket super posed onits covers, alonga predetermined path, means to open thecovers ofithe book-awayifrom its; page 1= block, wtpair' of twisted;- sheet-folding belts, extending lengthwise on respectively oppositely sides of the path, to engage the jackets and fold the same over the edges of the advancing book covers, and fold-defining members respectively disposed at the edges of said path, and providing edge structure spaced laterally a predetermined distance beyond the outer edges of the passing book covers, for cooperation with the folding belts to locate the jacket folds at a corresponding distance from the edges of the opened covers.

18. Apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising means for advancing a book, continuously and endwise, in an upright position with the binding edge of the book uppermost, along a predetermined path, cooperating stationary guide means adapted to engage and support the side faces of the page block of the book and maintain it in the upright position as it travels along said path, additional, stationary guide means adjacent said first mentioned guide means for engaging the inner faces of the book covers and opening the same away from the page block as the book traverses the path, means for positioning a jacket on the opened covers of the book and means including a pair of folding devices respectively disposed at opposite sides of said path beyond said additional stationary guide means, for folding a jacket over the opened covers of the book.

19. Apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising means for advancing a book continuously and endwise with its binding edge uppermost along a predetermined path,

stationary guide means disposed along said path and adapted to hold the moving book upright with its covers in opened relation to the page block thereof, means including folding devices adjacent said 'guide means, for folding a jacket over the opened covers of the book, cooperating guide means at a further locality of said path, shaped to permit displacement of the covers of the moving book toward closed relation, and further guide means beyond said last mentioned guide means adapted to engage the outer faces of the jacketed covers upon displacement of the book to said further guide means by the advancing means, for completing closure of said cover against the page block.

20. Apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising means for advancing a book continuously and endwise with its binding edge uppermost along a predetermined path, cooperating stationary guide means along said path adapted to support the covers of the book in opened relation to the page block thereof, means adjacent said guide means at a predetermined locality of said path for disposing a jacket sheet in superposed relation to the covers of the book, and folding devices disposed on opposite sides of said guide means at a further locality of the path, for engaging the jacket sheet and folding the outer portions of same over the outer edges of the book covers, said book advancing means including a traveling member adapted to abut the trailing edge of both the book and the jacket, for displacing said book and jacket together past the folding devices.

21. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, means for advancing successive books endwise and upright with their binding edges uppermost, continuously, along a predetermined path, a splitter element disposed in said path and adapted to pass between pages of the page block-of each book as the same advances,

'for initiating opening of the covers away from the page block, and cooperating guide means disposed at a further locality of said path and shaped to engage said partly opened covers for moving said covers into further open position as. the book is advanced along the path.

22. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, means for advancing successive books endwise and upright with their binding edges uppermost, continuously, along a predetermined path, guide rollers disposed on opposite sides of said path, means yieldably mounting said rollers for simultaneous equal movement in opposite directions transversely of the path, so that the guiderollers center each book in the path, a splitter element disposed in said path and adapted to pass between pages of the upright page block of said book as the same advances from the guide rollers, for initiating opening of the covers away from the page block, and cooperating guide means disposed at a further locality of said path and shaped to engage said partly opened covers for moving said covers into further open position as the book is advanced along the path.

23. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, means for advancing successive books endwise in vertical position with their back edges uppermost, along a predetermined path, a plurality of pairs of guide rollers at successive preliminary localities of said path, the guide rollers of each pair being respectively disposed at opposite sides of the path to engage the outer faces of each passing book, means yieldably mounting the guide rollers of each pair for simultaneous equal lateral displacement so that the guide rollers are adapted to center each moving book in the path, vertically disposed guide plates at a further locality of the path, for interleaved traversal of the moving book endwise approximately between the faces of its page block and the covers thereof, angularlydisposed guide members at the outer sides of said guide plates, shaped to engage the inner faces of the covers of each book and open the same to a substantially horizontal position as the book is moved past said guide members by the advancing means, and substantially horizontal guide plates on either side of said path at a still further locality thereof, to support the covers of each book in opened relation as the book is further displaced by the advancing means.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the advancing means comprises a member adapted to engage the trailing end of the book, and means for moving said member along the path, said apparatus including supplemental belt conveyor means disposed along said path beneath the books, to engage the lower edge of each book and cooperate with the first mentioned advancing means in supporting and displacing the book along the path.

25. Apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising means for advancing successive books, endwise in an upright position with the binding edges uppermost, continuously, along a predetermined path, stationary guide means extending lengthwise of said path on both sides thereof, to support the covers of the books in opened relation to the page blocks thereof as the books move along the path, jacket-receiving plate means disposed in spaced relation above said guide means at a predetermined locality of said path, means for feeding successive jackets to the upper face of said plate means, said book 17 i advancing means including a member adapted to engage the trailing edge of the covers of a book and the trailing edge of a jacket disposed on said plate means, for advancing said book and said jacket simultaneously away from the plate means, and sheet-folding means disposed at a further locality of said path, for folding the jacket over the covers of the book upon adva .cc of the book and jacket to said folding means by said member.

26. Apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising means for advancing sue-- cessive books with their binding edges uppermost, continuously, along a predetermined path, stationary guide means disposed on either side of a central portion of said path for supporting the passing books with their covers in opened relation to the page blocks thereof, means adjacent said guide means for folding a jacket over the covers of each book while the covers are held in said open relation by the guide means, and angularly disposed guiding structure at the opposite ends of said guide means. shaped to engage the undersides of the book covers as the books are moved along the path by the advancing means, for respectively opening the covers as each book approaches the guide means and for permitting the jacketed covers to move toward closed position as the book leaves said guide means.

27. The apparatus of claim 26, which includes book-conveying means disposed adjacent said path beyond said book-closing guide means, for moving successive books away from the path, and means disposed in the path and. adapted to be engaged by each passing book as the same is moved by the first mentioned advancing means, for displacing said book into engagement with the book-conveying means.

28. Apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising means for advancing a book along a predetermined path, cooperating guide means for supporting the covers of the book in opened relation to the page block thereof as the book is advanced along the path, said guide means and said advancing means being cooperatively adapted for reception of a jacket superposed on the opened covers of the book, for advancement of the jacket simultaneously with the book, a pair of twisted, sheet-folding belts, extending lengthwise on respectively opposite sides of the path, to engage the jackets and fold the same over the edges of the advancing book covers, and folddefining members disposed beneath said guide means at the edges of said path, and extending laterally a predetermined distance beyond the outer edges of the passing book, for cooperation with the folding belts to locate the jacket folds at a corresponding distance from the edges of the opened covers.

29. Apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising means for advancing successive books, continuously and endwise, in an upright position with the binding edge of each book uppermost, along a predetermined path, means disposed in said path adapted to be engaged by the covers of a passing book, and through movement of said book for opening said covers away from the page block of the book, means arranged to be engaged by the covers through and during continued movement of the book to a further locality of said path for maintaining said covers in open relation, and means for folding a jacket over the opened covers of the book while the latter is in motion and is being advanced to said further locality.

30. Apparatus for applying jackets to the covers of books, comprising means for advancing successive books continuously and endwise, in an upright position with the binding edge of each book uppermost, along a predetermined path, means in and at one locality of said path adapted to be engaged by the covers of a passing book and through movement of said book for opening said covers away from the page block of the book, means arranged to be engaged by the covers through and during continued movement of the book to a further locality of said path for maintaining said covers in open relation, means for folding a jacket over the opened covers of the book while-the latter is in motion and is being advanced to said further locality, said folding means comprising sheet-folding devices movable with the book and adapted to engage the outer surface of the jacket, and means controlling said devices to locate the fold lines in the jacket at localities spaced a predetermined distance from the outer edges of the opened book covers, and means at said further locality for causing the jacketed covers of the book, through movement of said book, to close against the page block.

LUIS DE FLOREZ. GARRETT B. LINDERMAN, J R.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 999,352 Waring Aug. 1, 1911 1,009,791 Rush Nov. 28, 1911 1,397,605 Rhoads Nov. 22, 1921 2,144,761 Herold Jan. 24, 1939 2,145,334 Bergstein Jan. 31, 1939 2,166,038 Chambon July 11, 1939 2,245,694 Lindholm June 17, 1941 2,252,931 Holm Aug. 19, 1941 2,296,906 Carlson Sept. 29, 1942 2,434,502 Martin Jan. 13, 1948 

